Thursday, April 1, 2021

Really Random Thursday, 4/1/21

 Welcome to the first day of April. No foolin'--a fourth of 2021 is already gone!

Ilone, the manager of Thrift on Blackstone, has been busy with yet another art installation. Yes, an art installation. At a thrift store. This one is her best yet. I don't know how she will possibly surpass this one.

Thousands and thousands of paint chips were donated. She found a pattern for a dragon from some guy in Iceland (I think that's where he was from...). She enlarged each section and went to work. I'll begin with a picture of Ella next to the head to give an idea of the scale.

I love the flames in front--made from thin sheets of plastic and then melted with a heat gun.

3D scales...






I can't believe that this guy is a teenager! He is so special--he is fun and funny, is content with what he has, doesn't ask for much (in fact, asking for a birthday list usually ends with him saying "I don't know..."), doesn't complain, and is very generous with saying "I love you."  We are so grateful that we have had extra time with him this year, a bright light in a challenging year.

We decided to head to the coast on Sunday. It was a beautiful day and we spent it in the Monterey/Carmel area.
We had lunch on 17-Mile Drive. A family had their golden retrievers with them, who spent an hour retrieving a tennis ball. Very entertaining.

Then we went into Carmel and had brunch at our favorite restaurant, A.W. Shucks. Now that we are in the red tier, we were even able to eat indoors, which felt quite "normal." There were only two other people eating inside and they were 10 feet away from us.

I bet you are wondering right now what was crowned the GPOAT--Greatest Product of All Time. Well, the wait is over. Google Search topped Microsoft Windows. Go ahead. You can google it. :)

The Morning Brew says next year's tournament will be the Worst Product of All Time. Should be interesting. "Early projections for the #1 seeds include scissors packaging, Amtrak wifi, lettuce as a bun, and fitted sheets."

In the yard...

Our friend, Dotty, gave us some of this beautiful ground cover several years ago--creeping phlox.

Miners lettuce. According to Dotty, it is a weed, kind of decorative and also edible. This is the first year I remember seeing it.
And then yesterday, Dotty stopped by with a vase full of my FFOAT (favorite flowers of all time), lilacs. When I lived in Oklahoma until fourth grade, we had a lot of lilacs. It is a memory from childhood that I think of each spring. I didn't think they grew well here in the central valley, but this week alone I have seen three lilac bushes/trees in our neighborhood. Now that Mark and I are turning into gardeners, we will have to look into planting one in our yard too.

This morning, since the kids are on spring break, we thought it would be fun to go have lunch at the zoo. We optimistically paid for parking. And then as we neared the entrance, we saw so.many.people! We have a season pass and therefore did not have to make reservations for entrance to the zoo like non-pass holders. But still...I couldn't capture in one photo how long the line was. The zoo opened at 9 a.m. and this was 11 a.m.--so I don't know how many people were already in the zoo by this point.

Nobody was comfortable with being around that many people. So instead, we went through the Chick Fil-A drive-through and ate in the back patio. The food was good and the conversation was, as always, entertaining.


Have you been following the fascinating story of the huge container ship blocking the Suez Canal like I have? If so, then you know by now that it was finally freed, thanks in no small part to an act of nature--a full moon affecting the tides! 
Happy Easter weekend.

6 comments:

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Anne / Springleaf Studios said... #

Have a blessed Easter Cindy.

OPQuilt said... #

You and I both tapped into the Suez Canal EverGiven stuck ship news--it kept me entertained for a long while. Love your opening picture and it was fun to catch up with you and your family. TWO teenagers!! Wow--can't believe it. Have a wonderful Easter!

OPQuilt said... #

Oh--and that Dragon! WOW--she's an amazing artist.

Robby said... #

I think I may have to put your thrift shop on my bucket list. At least as long as your current manager is there. The creativity in the displays is far better than any number of high end shops.

I'm sorry you didn't get to visit the zoo, but I'm sure I wouldn't have gone in either. I think we're closer than it feels to being able to safely do some of those things. And you did get to go to the coast, which sounds wonderful. We live in a beautiful place, but there is still a giant pile of dirty snow lingering from our last big snow storm. And by "last" I mean most recent, not that I'm confident we won't get more snow this season.

Happy Easter! May all your bunnies be chocolate.

Needled Mom said... #

OMGoodness! That dragon is definitely a piece of art! Do they raffle off the past window pieces. If not, they should! Carmel looked beautiful. Did you see the Patchwork house on the 17 Mile Drive? Happy Easter.

FlourishingPalms said... #

All I can say about that paint chip dragon is "wow." That thrift shop owner missed her calling as a full-time artist, didn't she? The dragon is incredible. When she's finished with it, I hope she donates it to a place that can display it - a library? a school? Nice that you could get away to the beach. We still haven't done that, but simply must! I know the way you're feeling about eating in a restaurant, or being around crowds, even after being vaccinated. It's unsettling. I like seeing your plants, but seeing those lilacs makes me want to weep. I MISS lilac so much! We had several wonderful bushes in our Iowa backyard, and the dwarf Korean lilacs emitted the most glorious scent! All we needed to do was open the family room window, and the whole house smelled marvelous. I really, really miss lilacs. (And hanging laundry outdoors.) I hope you are able to grow lilacs for yourselves. Easter blessings.